Piston cleaning tool



May 4, 1965 w. A. CONINX PISTON CLEANING TOOL Filed June 3, 1963 2Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR WILLIAM A. Co/v/xvx BY v\% ORNEY y 1965 w. A.CONINX 3,181,191

PISTON CLEANING TOOL Filed June a, 1963 -2 Sheets-Sheet 2 United StatesPatent Office 3,181,191 Patented May 4, 1965 3,181,191 PISTON L1EANKNGTGGL William A. Coninx, 273 W. 5th St, St. Paul, Minn. Filed June 3,1963, Ser. No. 285,607 16 Claims. (Cl. 15lil4.0l)

This invention relates to a piston cleaning tool and in particular to atool adapted for use in cleaning the grooves of a piston or threadedcylinder, the tool being slidably and pivotally mounted in relation tothe piston or cylinder so as to be readily and continuously aligned withthe grooves to be cleaned, and having means whereby a plurality ofcleaning blades of difierent cleaning widths may be detachably securedto the tool so as to be selectively utilized.

In common practice internal combustion engines and particularly internalcombustion engines such as are used in the automotive trade have theirpistons cleaned when the engines are being overhauled. The cleaningoperation includes the cleaning of the ring grooves in order thatreplacement rings may be fitted in the grooves to control oilconsumption and provide a better fitting piston within the bore of theengine. Cleaning of the pistons and their ring grooves for many garagesand for the individual mechanic is a particularly time consumingprocedure due to the hardness of the carbon which has become attached tothe piston grooves, head, and wall. Whereas brushes may clean the pistonskirts with some success, the brushes are generally inefficient inremoving carbon from the piston grooves, and the operator or mechanicperforming the cleaning operation is required to give particular care,time, and attention to his task if any reasonable degree of professionalworkmanlike cleaning is to be done.

It is a common practice to clean piston grooves with brushes, scrapers,and the like both by hand and by brushing and scraping the pistons whichare generally mounted on a lathe or other turning device or which arerotated in a piston cleaning machine such as my US. Patent 2,690,577.Quite commonly, various liquids are used to help clean the loosenedcarbon from the piston. The efficiency of these methods of cleaning thepiston grooves particularly for the relatively unskilled workman isunsatisfactory because of the time consumed in the close attention whichis required if the cleaning is to be well done. Small garages and evenlarge agencies have found removing carbon from pistons to be such a timeconsuming, laborious task, that in general such work has been sent tomachine shops who make a specialty of such cleaning operations.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a cleaning toolincluding a cleaning blade having a cleaning edge portion adapted toreside within the groove of a piston or other threaded cylinder toscrape the accumulated carbon or undesired residue from the walls andbottom of the groove which may be effectively used by a relativelyunskilled workman. It is a further object to provide a cleaning toolhaving a plurality of replaceable cleaning blades exactly fitting thewidth of the grooves to be cleaned and being selectively available asdesired by the operator.

As will be understood pistons and other cylinders may vary greatly bothin diameter and in the width of the grooves and in addition in theangular relationship of the grooves or threads to the axis of the pistonor cylinder. The rapidity with which the groove may be cleanedefiiciently is obviously greatly increased by selecting a properlyfitting blade which will cleaningly engage in the groove and loosen andremove the deposits therein.

The invention includes a head detachably secured to a lever shafthandle. An intermediate portion of the lever shaft handle is rotatablysupported by a block which is pivotally secured to a second block, thesecond block being supported in slidable relation on a support bar whichis in generally akial alignment with the piston to be cleaned. Thecleaning head is secured to one end of the lever handle with the opposedend of the lever handle being enlarged to provide a gripping surface anda counterweight to the head. The head includes a pair of outwardlyopposed channels in which cleaning blades are adapted to reside. Eachchannel includes a pin transversely secured in the Walls of the channeladapted to engage a registrable recess in the blade member. As will beunderstood, rotation oi the handle results in a similar rotation of thehead whereby the mechanic may choose the blade desired for the cleaningoperation.

Each cleaning blade includes an edge portion adapted to engage in thegroove of the piston or cylinder to be cleaned. In order to eifectivelyclean the groove it is necessary that the blade edge engage along asufficient length of its edge in order to efiiciently perform itscleaning function. The preferred blade shape includes a relatively fiatblade having an edge portion adapted to be engaged by the pin in thechannel recess and having a cleaning edge which includes a straightportion and a curved portion depending from one end of the straight edgeportion. Because of the wide variation in the diameter of cylinders suchas pistons, the combination of a straight edge portion and a curved edgeportion enables the cleaning blade to engage within a groove to becleaned throughout a substantial portion of the annular groove. Teethmeans having a beveled cutting edge are provided in spaced relationalong the edge of the blade, and at least one drag tooth is provided inthe curved edge of the blade to cause the cleaning edge of the blade tomore quickly seat into the groove to be cleaned and to efficientlyremove loosened carbon from the groove. As will be understood, thecleaning edge of the blade will cleanly engage within the groove along agreater portion of its length as the groove is cleaned.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a cleaning blade forthe annular grooves of a piston or other cylinder having an edgeincluding spaced apart planar teeth adapted to cleaningly engage in thegroove, the edge including a straight portion and a curved portiondepending from one end of the straight edge portion to efliciently cleanthe groove of a cylinder without concern as to its diameter.

As has been mentioned, a horizontal support bar is provided parallel tothe axis of rotation of the piston to be cleaned. The horizontal bar issupported at its ends by a pair of legs which may be mounted to a bed orto the machine rotating the piston. The second block is slidable uponthe horizontal support bar to enable the cleaning tool to be moved tosuccessive grooves during the cleaning operation. In addition, when thetool is used to clean the threads of a cylinder such as a pipe, the toolmay continuously clean the threads because of the ability of the tool tomove laterally in supported relation upon the horizontal bar. The firstblock is pivotally secured in overlying relation to the second block bya pivot pin thereby making the tool both pivotal and slidable inrelation to the horizontal support bar and the rotated piston. Aspreviously indicated, the cleaning head may be rotated on the levershaft thereby permitting the operator to choose the particular cleaningedge desired and also to permit the tool to follow in cleaning relationa groove having an angled Wall. Because of the ability of the cleaningtool to move slidably and pivotally on the support bar, the leverablerelation of the head and handle shaft to the support bar, the pivotalrelation of the first and second mounting blocks, and the rotationalmounting of the lever handle in the first block, the tool i may bedescribed as being mounted in a full floating relation.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a cleaning tooladapted to cleaningly engage the grooves or threads of a cylinder and tobe self aligning in its relation to the said groove or threads.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a cleaningtool for cylinders such as pistons wherein the tool may be used by arelatively unskilled operator without the likelihood of damage to thetool or to the grooves of the cylinder being cleaned. The head includesa stop member engageable against an outer surface of the cylinderwhereby the depth to which the cleaning edge of the blade may beinserted in the groove can be controlled. Generally, the stop enables aninexperienced machinist to operate with a greater degree of confidencethat he will not urge the teeth of the cleaning edge against the bottomof the groove when such urging is not necessary. The cleaning tooloperator accordingly may set the stop which includes a bar pivotallymounted in 'parallel relation to the blade to the head of the tool andhaving a thumb screw to urge the stop downwardly to engage a surface ofthe piston adjacent to the groove being cleaned. The operator lowers theblade into the piston groove until the blade has cut and cleaned thegroove to a point where the stop engages against the piston. At thispoint, the blade can no longer be urged into the groove and the operatorknows that he has cleaned to the desired depth.

Normally in cleaning automotive pistons for example, the operator willplace all the pistons to be cleaned by his machine. He next selects theproper cleaning blades and places them in the cleaning end. Aspreviously mentioned, the blades are engaged in a pair of outwardlyopposed channels with the head being secured to the rotatable shaft soas to enable the operator to select the cleaning blade he wishes to use.Generally, the grooves of a piston are of no more than two dilferentwidths. Accordingly, the operator places the piston in the devicerotating the pistons such as my previously mentioned piston cleaningmachine and causes the piston to be rotated. He then leverably urges theselected blade into the groove to be cleaned and cleans until the stockengages the piston. He then cleans the remaining grooves in the pistonin the same manner and continues with the other pistons to be cleaned.It has been found that an operator is able to clean a set of six oreight pistons from an automobile engine within a relatively few minutes.It has been further found that the unskilled operator can do aneffective and efficient cleaning of the grooves without the necessity ofan extended period of training.

Since in the usual machine shop operation a wide variety of pistons areencountered, it is necessary that the operator be able to change hisblades readily. I have provided a collar on the shaft adjacent to thehead having a recess alignable with the recess of the blade channel. Aspreviously mentioned, a blade engages in the channel recess. The bladeincludes a generally L-shaped opening or recess registrable with thetransverse pin which is secured in the walls of the channel. The hub orcollar is rotated until the channel recesses of the hub are aligned withthe recesses of the channels in the head. The blade is inserted into thealigned recesses until the L-shaped blade aperture is registrable withthe transverse channel pin and the pin is then urged into lockingengagement within the L-shaped aperture. A portion of the L-shapedaperture is in a generally right angular relation to the edge of theblade with the face of the aperture extending rearwardly therefrom.Since the blade to be engaged on the pin must be inserted in onedirection, the blade in order to be detached must be moved in theopposite direction. By rotating the hub or collar so that the recessesof the hub are no longer aligned with the channel recesses, the bladesare prevented from becoming disengaged from the channel pin. A pair ofsprings are mounted in registrable socket aligned with the channelrecesses in spaced apart rearward relation to the transverse pins tospringably urge the blades out of the channel recesses. This particularconstruction permits the blades to be movable in the channel recesseswhile in cleaning engagement in the groove. A safety factor is therebyintroduced which serves to protect the blade and the cylinder if theoperator fails to align the cleaning edge of the blade in the groovesince the blade will pivot on the transverse pin to compress the springas it encounters the metal of the cylinder. In addition, the springmounting continuously urges the blade into cutting relation with thecarbon or other residue being removed from the groove.

In the preferred construction the blade may be comprised of a pair ofmembers including a base portion and a blade portion having the cleaningedge. Since it will be understood, that the blades in use will graduallywear and the teeth become dull, a considerable saving can be efiected bythe preferred combination described. The base portion is essentially anelongated rectangular bar including a longitudinal inset edge. The baseportion includes the L-shaped aperture previously described. The bladehaving the cleaning edge is secured to the base by a pair of pins orother suitable means. Accordingly, when the cutting edges have beendulled, the cleaning blade edge is removed from the base and a newcleaning blade edge attached to the base.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a cleaning bladehaving a cleaning edge portion detachable from a base portion in orderthat the portion of the blade subjected to wear may be quickly andeconomically replaced when necessary.

In the cleaning of threads on a cylinder such as pipe where the cleaningis to be conducted along a relatively great length, the operator alignsthe cleaning blade edge in the groove of the threaded pipe and leverablyurges the blade into the groove until the threads are cleaned to hissatisfaction It will be obvious that the tool will continuously alignitself with the threads being cleaned as long as the blades are kept inengagement within the groove.

Locking screws are provided to prevent inadvertent rotation of the shaftand inadvertent pivotal movement of the blocks in relation to each otherand to the support bar thereby providing the operator with complete andpositive control of all possible movements of the tool.

As will be readily apparent, I have provided a cleaning tool forremoving the residue such as carbon from the grooves of pistons andother cylinders which is particularly adapted for use by an unskilledoperator and which will readily and efiiciently perform the desiredcleaning operations. I have further provided a cleaning tool wherein theparts which are subject to the greatest wear may be readily removed forreplacement. I have further provided a tool in which the blade cleaningedges are designed to universally accommodate cylinders of differentdiameters. In addition, I have provided a tool wherein the cleaningblade may be quickly and easily replaced, and in which the blades aremounted to protect both the blades and the cylinders being cleaned fromundue wear or damage. In addition I have provided a tool which may beused in combination with present cleaning machine and which may be usedin addition with the equipment normally available in small garages wherea minimum of power equipment is available.

These and other particular objects and details of my invention willbefurther described and detailed in the following specification taken inconjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:

FIGURE 1 is a side elevation of the piston groove cleaning tool incleaning relation to an axially rotated piston.

FIGURE 2 is a perspective view of the cleaning blade of the pistongroove cleaning tool.

FIGURE 3 is a section showing the cleaning relation of the teeth of theblade to an axially rotated piston.

FIGURE 4 is a top plan view of the tool in cleaning relation with thegroove of a piston.

FIGURE 5 is .a side elevation partly in section showing the manner inwhich the cleaning blade is engaged in the channel recess of the head.

FIGURE 6 is a rear elevation of the frame supporting structure inrelation to the horizontal tool supporting bar with the mounting blockin slidable relation.

FIGURE 7 is a longitudinal section through the cleaning head showing therelationship of the blade receiving channel to the spring retainingsockets.

FIGURE 8 is a cross section through the head illustrating the preferredrelation of the gauge stops to the cleaning blades.

FIGURE 9 is a section taken along the lines 99 of FIGURE 4 showing themeans whereby the cleaning head is secured in detachable relation to thelever handle shaft.

The drawings disclose a groove cleaning tool generally numbered A foruse in cleaning the grooves of an axially rotated cylinder such as thepiston 10 shown in FIG- URE 1.

The preferred construction of the tool comprises four basic elements forthe purposes of description consisting of a cleaning head generallynumbered 12 having a body 14 including a pair of outwardly disposedopposed cleaning blades 16 and 18 which will be further described forcleaning engagement in a groove such as 19 of an axially rotatedcylinder such as the piston 10.

The body 14 has a centrally located rear recess such as a socket 20 intowhich one end of a shaft generally numbered 22 is engaged as shown at24. The shaft 22 serves as a lever handle to urge the cleaning head 12into cleaning engagement in the groove to be cleaned. The handle shaft22 is an elongated rod, in preferred form being cylindrical, having oneend 24 engaged in the socket 20 of the head 12 and the other end of theshaft 22 including an enlarged end which may be integral with the shaftand which is numbered 26 to provide a handle grip and to further serveas a counterweight for the head 12.

The shaft handle 22 in preferred construction is supported intermediateits ends by a pair of superposed mounting blocks 28 and 30 as may beseen in FIGURE 1, the blocks 28 and 30 being held in pivotalrelationship by a pivot pin 32 as may be seen in FIGURE 4.

In preferred construction the upper block 28 has an aperture whichextends longitudinally through the block 28 and in the shaft 22 residesin rotatable relation to the block 23 for a purpose which will befurther described.

The lower block 30 has a lateral opening through the block through whicha generally horizontal support alignment arm 34 extends to provide afulcrum for the pivotally related blocks 28 and 30, the ends 36 and 38of the generally cylindrical support rod which serves as the arm 34being engaged by a pair of vertical frame members 40 and 42. The loweror second block member 30 is pivotally and slidably secured on the arm34. Pivotal or slidable movement of the block 30 causes related movementof the other cooperable portions of the tool A.

As previously pointed out, the tool A has the elements of a cleaninghead, lever handle, mounting blocks, and supporting frame structurewhich will be separately described in some further detail.

It will be understood that a cylinder such as the piston 10 may beaxially rotated in many ways such as in a lathe, on a powered shaft, orin a piston cleaning machine such as my US. Patent 2,690,577 for thepurpose of my cleaning tool. It is preferably desired that the cylinderbe rotated without wobbling; however, my cleaning tool does not requirethat the piston or other cylinder be rotated around a horizontal axis.The tool A will align itself or may be aligned by the operator with thegroove to be cleaned because of the full floating mounting.

The usual grooved cylinders such as the piston 10 has external parallelannular grooves such as the groove 19 which are generally of the samewidth or in the case of internal combustion engines such as an.automobile, the ring grooves may be of two different widths. In thethreading of pipes or other similar cylinders, the grooves maintain aconstant angular relationship throughout the length of the pipe, and thetool A is particularly adapted for cleaning such grooves.

The cleaning head 12 has a generally elongated rectangular body 14including in preferred construction a pair of outwardly facing opposedchannels such as the channel 44 illustrated in FIGURE 5. Each channelsuch as 44 is coextensive with the side of the body 14 in which it isfound, the channel providing a generally elongated rectangular slot orrecess in the body 14 in which a cleaning blade may be removablyengaged. As may be seen in FIGURE 5 and FIGURE 7, each channel includesa pin means such as 46 and 48 which extends transversely across therecess or slot of the channel and has its ends engaged in the channelslot enclosing portions of the body 14, the pin being located adjacentthe forward end of the channel slot and intermediate the bottom and topof the channel slot to provide a means of pivotal engagement for acleaning blade.

As may be seen in FIGURE 2, a cleaning blade such as 16 or 18 iscomprised preferably of a base member 50 and a blade member 52 which maybe detached from the base member 50 to which it is secured by pins 54and 56 such as rivets, pins, and the like when the cleaning edge of theblade member 52 has become unduly worn or dulled.

The blade base member is a generally elongated rectangular flat bar of alength to coextend with the channel slots such as 44 in which itengages. One longitudinal edge of the base 50 includes a generallyinverted Lshaped opening adjacent the forward end of the base member,the L-shaped opening being generally numbered 58 and including a portionof the opening extending inwardly in a generally perpendicular relationto the edge 66 as shown at 62 and having a further portion of theopening extending rearwardly from the perpendicular portion as is shownat 64, the rearwardly extending portion being in generally parallelrelation to the edge 64 of the base 50. The spacing of the L-shapedopening 50 is such as to cause the opening 58 to be registrable with thepin such as 46 in the channel recess in order to enable the base 59 tobe engaged on the pin 46. The opposed longitudinal edge 66 of the baseStl includes a recessed longitudinal portion coextensive with the baselength and of sufiicient depth to accommodate the thickness of thecleaning blade 52. The longitudinal recess enables the exposed side ofthe cleaning blade 52 to be coplanar with the side of the base 50. Theblade 52 is secured in the recessed portion of the base 50 by a pair ofpins 54 and 56 as previously mentioned.

The generally flat blade 52 includes the engaged portion 68 which issecured to the base 50 in the longitudinal recess of the base 50, and acleaning edge portion generally numbered 70 which will be furtherdescribed. The outward edge of the cleaning edge portion '70 includes astraight portion 72 extending rearwardly from the forward end 74 of theblade and a curved portion 74 which curves outwardly from the straightedge portion 72. In the operating position of the blade in relation to apiston groove, the curved portion of the edge depends from the straightedge portion 72. The combination of the curved edge 74 and the straightedge 72 enables the blade to universally adapt itself to the diameter ofthe cylinder whose grooves are being cleaned.

As will be understood, the diameter of the cylinders may varyconsiderably. For a cylinder of a diameter providing a groovedcircumference corresponding to the curvature of the blade will result ina continuous cleaning contact throughout the length of the curved edgewithin the cylinder groove. Where the cylinder is of a diameter suchthat its grooved circumference does not correspond to the curved edge74, a segment of the curved blade edge 74 will cleaningly engage in thepiston groove. Where the cylinder is of a diameter to exceed thecurvature of the edge 74, the cleaning edge 70 will engage the groove ofthe cylinder along at least a portion of the straight edge 72 and thecurved edge 74, the amount of cleaning engagement of the blade edge 79depending on the cylinder diameter and the depth of the groove.

The edge 70 of the cleaning blade includes spaced aligned teeth such as76, 80, 82, and 84. The cleaning edges of the teeth are beveled as maybe clearly seen in FIGURE 3 to provide an angled cleaning edge such as86. The teeth 76, 80, 82, and 84 extend from the straight edge portion72 in spaced relation to at least a portion of the curved edge 74. As isobvious, the cleaning edge beveled angle of each tooth will varyaccording to its position on the cleaning edge.

A drag tooth 88 is provided adjacent the rearward end of the curvedcleaning edge 74, the tooth 83 being a recess or slot extending atapproximately right angles to the curved edge portion in which it islocated and including an enlarged terminal portion of the slot or recess90.

As may be seen in the various drawings such as FIG- URES 1 and 3, theportions of the blade edge 70 adjacent to and intermediate the teeth 76,8t), 82 are sloped outwardly from the teeth and the enlarged terminalend 90 of the drag tooth 88 is disposed outwardly of the groove in whichthe drag tooth is engaged to cause residue such as scrapings of carbonfrom the cylinder groove to collect in the spaced recesses and to beurged therefrom by further scrapings. As the scrapings are urged out ofthe spaces between the teeth and the aperture 90 they are displaced toone side of the cleaning blade.

Each blade 16 and 18 is limited as to cleaning engagement in the groovebeing cleaned by a gauge stop means such as 92 and 94 pivotally securedto the blade by a pivot pin such as 96 and 98 to allow the stop to movepivotally in parallel relation to the blade and to engage against anexterior surface of the piston to limit the depth of engagement of theblade into the groove being cleaned. The gauge stop is a flat var ingenerally parallel relation to the cleaning blade and adjacent theretoand having an end portion extending forwardly beyond the end of the body14. The stop includes an outwardly faced lip 100 engageable with the endof a threaded thumb screw 102 extending through a threaded aperture inthe mounting post 104.

The mounting post 104 extends transversely through the body 14 of thehead 12. A similar thumb screw is provided for each blade. The stop 100,for example, is raised or depressed to permit the blade edge to enter agroove being cleaned to a certain depth, the engagement of the screwagainst the stop 100 preventing the blade from being further loweredinto the groove. The lip 100 permits the operator of the tool A to raisethe stop to a point where it engages against the screw.

The body 14 of the head 12 includes a pair of spaced apertures 106 and108 registrable with the channel recesses in which the cleaning bladesare engaged, each aperture including a spring 1 19, 112 engageableagainst the base of the cleaning blades to springably urge the bladesoutwardly from the channel recesses. As the blades engage the grooves,the springs 110, 112 provide a continuous urging of the blade outwardlyand thereby tend to keep the cleaning edges of the blade in cleaningengagement with the residue in the groove. Further, the spring actuatingof the blades provides a safety factor should the blade edge beinadvertently urged against a portion of the cylinder other than withinthe groove being cleaned. A screw 114 such as a wing screw having aspring 116 encircling the threaded shank of the screw is threaded intoan exterior channel well whereby the spring actuation of the bladesoutwardly may be circumvented.

The rear-ward end of the body 14 having the socket into which the end 24of the shaft 22 engages includes a rotatable hub or collar 118 having apair of opposed recesses which may be rotated into or out of alignmentwith the channel recesses in which the blade 16 and 18 engage to permitthe blade to be inserted forwardly into a channel recess of the body 14to be engaged by the pin such as 48 in the L-shaped aperture 58. Theblade may be prevented from becoming disengaged from the pin 48 byrotation of the collar 1 18 to disalign the channel in the hub collarfrom that of the body 14.

In preferred construction a wing screw 120 is provided which extendsthrough an aperture in the rotatable collar 118 to be engaged againstthe end of the shaft 22 to hold the head 12in engagement on the shaft.

The superposed mounting blocks 28 and 30 in preferred constructioninclude a pair of generally rectangular blocks with one surface in facecontact. A pivot pin 32 is inserted through an aperture in the firstblock and engaged in the second block to hold the blocks 28 and 30 inpivotal relation. A wing screw 122 is threaded through an aperture inthe first block and engageable against the upper surface of the secondblock to hold the superposed blocks in non-pivotal or angled relation ifdesired. The upper block includes an aperture extending through theblock from end to end intermediate the upper and lower surfaces of theblock. The shaft 22 is rotatably secured in this aperture.

An aperture is provided extending therethrough the second block fromside to side intermediate the upper and lower surfaces of the secondmounting block through which the support arm 34 is designed to extend,the second mounting block being pivotally and slidably secured to thesupport arm 34. A sleeve 124 may be provided in the aperture of theblock to serve as a bearing surface to reduce wear between the arm andthe block.

As has been mentioned, the shaft 22 is rotational in the block 28. Theshaft 22 is prevented from moving forwardly or backwardly in the blockaperture by collars 126, 128, and in preferred construction. The collarsencircle the shaft 22 at each end of the mounting block 28 as may beclearly seen in FIGURES l and 4. The collars 126, 128, and 130 aresecured to the shaft by set screws such as 132, 134, and 136. Thecollars 126 and 128 have a face surface of each collar in contact withan end of the block 28 and include aligned depressions such as 138 and140 in the said contacting face surfaces. Each collar has a pair ofdiametrically opposed depressions on its surface. An aperture 142including an elongated spring 144 therein having a ball end 146, 148thereon extends through the first block 28 in generally parallelrelation through the aperture through which the shaft 22 extends.Rotation of the shaft 22 causes the ball ends 146, 148 of the spring 144to engage and disengage in the aligned depressions such as 138 and 140as the handle shaft is rotated thereby enabling the tool operator toknow by feel when the head 12 has been rotated into cleaning relation.Where cleaning blades of two different widths are required, the operatormerely rotates the shaft 22 until it clicks into position to be ready touse the other blade.

A wing screw 150 which extends through an aperture in the first blockregistrably with the shaft 22 is used to hold the shaft 22 innon-rotational relation in the block 28.

The blocks 28 and 30 may be moved angularly in relation to each other bymeans of a screw adjusting means 152 threadably engaged in a flange 154secured to the block 30 by any suitable means, the end of the screwadjusting means 152 being engageable against a side surface of the block28. By means of the screw adjustment 152, the operator may angularlymove the head 12 in relation to the cylinder whose grooves are beingcleaned.

As previously mentioned and as may be seen in FIG- URE 6, the supportarm 34 is preferably a generally cylindrical bar whose ends 36 and 38are secured to the upper ends of a pair of frame supports for the end 42by fastening means such as set screws, one of which is shown in FIGURE 1and numbered 156. The lower ends 153, 160 of the frame supports may bethreaded externally as shown in the enlarged view in FIGURE 1 andsecured to a platform or bent surface 162 by any suitable means such asnuts 164, 166.

The tool A as preferably manufactured is of metal with those portionssubject to wear being readily accessible for lubrication. The wearingsurfaces may be hardened. The blade is normally harder than the metal ofthe cylinder such as the piston 10.

To use the tool a piston is inserted in the piston cleaning machine orother device which serves to rotate the piston axially, the pistonaccess being generally parallel to the support arm 34. The tool A isslid along the bar 34 until the cleaning blade is in alignment with thegroove to be cleaned. The cleaning edge of the blade is leverably urgedinto the groove and such urging continues until the groove is cleaned orfurther insertion of the blade is prevented by the stop means. At thispoint the groove has been cleaned to the operators satisfaction becauseof its election of a blade having a cleaning edge of the proper widthfor the groove. Successive grooves of the piston are cleaned in asimilar manner. If all of the grooves are of the same width, obviouslyonly one cleaning blade edge will be used. If, however, the grooves areof two diiferent widths, the operator will clean all of the grooves ofthe same Width and rotate his handle shaft to place the other cleaningblade edge in position and clean the remaining grooves. It is possiblefor a skilled operator to easily and efficiently clean a set of six oreight positions within the matter of a few minutes.

Because of the ease with which the tool may be aligned by the operatorand the continuously aligning relation of the blade in the groove to thefull floating mounted tool, an operator is not able to make any errorswhich will result in damage to the piston or other cylinder beingcleaned.

It will, of course, be obvious that it would be possible to eliminatesome of the refinements which make the tool successful and still obtainresults which would be satisfactory. But the preferred construction hasbeen described. It will be further obvious that modifications may bemade in the use of materials other than those which have been described.

While I have set forth the best embodiments of my invention, I desire tohave it understood that obvious changes and modifications may be madewithin the scope of the following claims without departing from thespirit of my invention.

I claim:

1. A groove cleaning tool adapted for use with an axially rotatedcylinder having annular grooves therein comprising:

(a) a cleaning head,

(b) an elongated blade pivotally supported by said head on an axisparallel to the axis of rotation of said cylinder and adapted to snuglyengage in a cylinder groove,

() a shaft secured to said head,

(d) a block supporting said shaft on an axis arranged in a plane norm-a1to the axis of rotation of the cylinder, and

(e) said block pivotally supporting said shaft on an axis parallel tothe axis of rotation of the cylinder.

2. The structure of claim 1 including means pivotally supporting saidblock and in which said means pivotally supporting said block alsoslidably supports said block and shaft for movement parallel to the axisof rotation of said cylinder.

3. The structure of claim 1 and including spring means interposedbetween said head and said blade for urging said blade toward thecylinder.

4. The structure of claim 1 and including adjustable means carried bysaid blade and engageable with a portion of said cylinder adjacent thegroove in which said blade is engaged to limit the depth to which theblade may engage in the groove.

5. The structure of claim 1 and in which the blade includes an arcuateportion engageable in the groove for a substantial arcuate distance anda straight toothed portion extending generally tangentially with respectto the base of the groove.

6. A groove cleaning tool adapted for use with an axially rotatedcylinder having annular grooves comprising:

(a) a cleaning blade adapted to scrapingly engage against the sides andbottom of a groove in an axially rotated cylinder,

(b) lever means connected to said blade to leverablyurge said blade intoengagement with a groove,

(c) support means including an alignment support bar adapted to slidablyand pivotally support said lever means in cleaning relation to a saidaxially rotated cylinder, and

(d) stop means pivotally secured to said blade and engageable with asurface of a said axially rotated cylinder to limit engagement with asaid axially rotated cylinder,

(e) said lever means including an elongated handle having a cylindricalbearing portion in rotatable engagement with said support bar.

7. A grooove cleaning tool adapted for use with an axially rotatedcylinder having annular grooves comprismg:

(a) a cleaning blade adapted to scrapingly engage against the sides andbottom of a groove in an axially rotated cylinder,

(b) lever means connected to said blade to leverably urge said bladeinto engagement with a groove,

(0) support means including an alignment support bar adapted to slidablyand pivotally support said lever means in cleaning relation to a saidaxially rotated cylinder, and

(d) stop means pivotally secured to said blade and engageable with asurface of a said axially rotated cylinder to limit engagement with asaid axially rotated cylinder,

(e) said lever means including a block means, an

elongated handle having a cylindrical bearing portion secured inrotatable relation to said block means, and means pivotally and slidablysecuring said block to said support bar.

8. The structure of claim 7 and in which said block means includes ablock having an axial aperture theregil'Olligh, with said handle beingrotatably secured in said 1 oc 9. A cleaning tool adapted to be used toclean the grooves of an axially rotated cylinder having annular groovestherein comprising:

(a) an elongated flat blade of a width to snugly fit Within a groove ofsaid cylinder,

(b) said blade having a curved edge portion adapted to ride in thegroove through a substantial angular portion of the groove and to holdthe blade on a plane normal the axis of rotation of the cylinder,

(0) said blade having a substantially straight edge adjoining saidcurved edge portion and adapted to extend tangentially with respect tothe base of the groove,

(d) spaced cutting teeth in said straight edge,

(e) a head supporting said blade,

(f) a handle secured to said head, and

(g) means pivotally supporting said handle on an axis parallel to theaxis of rotation of said cylinder and pivotal in a plane normal to theaxis of rotation of said cylinder.

10. The structure of claim 9 and in which said blade .E, .5. ispivotally connected to said head near the end of said straight edge onan axis parallel to the axis of rotation of said cylinder.

11. The structure of claim 10 and including resilient means carried bysaid head and urging the curved end of said blade toward said cylinder.

12. The structure of claim 9 and including stop means pivotallysupported by said blade adjoining the free end of said straight edge andengageable with the outer surface of the cylinder to limit the extent towhich this end of the blade may engage into said groove.

13. The structure of claim 9 and including notches between said teethwhich are of a depth from the cutting edges of said teeth greater thanthe depth of said groove.

14. The structure of claim 9 and including means for slidably supportingsaid handle supporting means for movement parallel to the axis ofrotation of said cylinder.

15. A cleaning tool adapted to be used to clean the grooves of anaxially rotatable cylinder having annular grooves comprising:

(a) a head,

(11) a pair of oppositely extending elongated blades supported by saidhead, each blade being of a thickness to snugly fit into a groove insaid cylinder,

() each said blade including an arcuate edge portion and a substantiallystraight adjoining edge portion adapted to extend substantially tangentto the base of the groove when engaged therein,

(d) spaced cutting teeth in said straight edge portion of each saidblade,

(e) a handle secured to said head, and

(1) means pivotally supporting said handle for movement about an axisparallel to the axis of rotation of said cylinder.

16. The structure of claim 15 and including pivot means connecting theblades to said head at the straight ends of said blades, and

spring means between said blades urging them apart.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,454,834 5/23Hammett 82-44 X 1,560,441 11/25 Trosper.

2,497,228 2/50 Miller.

2,616,108 1l/52 Luft l5-104.l X 2,695,542 11/54 Ward.

2,966,819 l/61 Pealer 8293 3,073,073 1/63 Van Pelt 143-46 X CHARLES A.WILLMUTH, Primary Examiner.

1. A GROOVE CLEANING TOOL ADAPTED FOR USE WITH AN AXIALLY ROTATEDCYLINDER HAVING ANNULAR GROOVES THEREIN COMPRISING: (A) A CLEANING HEAD,(B) AN ELONGATED BLADE PIVOTALLY SUPPORTED BY SAID HEAD ON AN AXISPARALLEL TO THE AXIS OF ROTATION OF SAID CYLINDER AND ADAPTED TO SNUGLYENGAGE IN A CYLINDER GROOVE, (C) A SHAFT SECURED TO SAID HEAD, (D) ABLOCK SUPPORTING SAID SHAFT ON AN AXIS ARRANGED IN A PLANE NORMAL TO THEAXIS OF ROTATION OF THE CYLINDER, AND (E) SAID BLOCK PIVOTALLYSUPPORTING SAID SHAFT ON AN AXIS PARALLEL TO THE AXIS OF ROTATION OF THECYLINDER.